Recommendation Event Planning · Crafts & DIY

Best Outdoor Christmas Lights that are Easy to Install

For Whom/What:

Outdoor Christmas decorating for a house

Requirements:

Easy to install and remove

Reliable outdoors

Doesn't require tons of extension cords

Easy to store without becoming completely tangled

Warm white preferred

Extra Details:

I want the outside of the house to look festive, but I don't want Christmas lights to become a two-day installation project every December. I'm open to traditional string lights, curtain lights, permanent lighting systems or something else entirely. Mainly looking for products or systems people have actually used that make decorating significantly easier without sacrificing how the house looks.

Caleb Harris
2 days ago

I'd look at Twinkly Strings, especially if you want to decorate trees, shrubs or porch railings rather than outline your entire roof.

I actually prefer this type of lighting because you don't have to commit to leaving anything installed year-round. You put them up for Christmas, take them down afterward, and you're done.

The clever part is the app. You can map the lights using your phone's camera and then customize the effects. I personally think the really flashy animations are a bit much for a house, but a soft warm-white glow with a subtle twinkle looks beautiful.

One thing I'd pay attention to is the wire color. Dark green wires practically disappear in trees and bushes, but can be more noticeable against white railings or light-colored trim.

Twinkly isn't the cheapest option, and honestly, if all you want is basic white lights, you probably don't need the smart features. But if you like changing your Christmas decorations from year to year without buying new lights, they're worth considering.

Strings
Brand: Twinkly
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We switched to Govee Permanent Outdoor Lights and I don't think I could go back to putting up regular Christmas lights every year.

The initial installation obviously takes longer because you're actually mounting them, but after that they're just…there. Christmas comes and you change the colors/settings in the app. Christmas is over and you turn them off. 😂

The biggest selling point for me was that they don't have to look like RGB gamer lights. You can set them to a warm white and use them as normal architectural lighting for the rest of the year.

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